­ A Brief History of Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was one of the most powerful civilizations in the history of mankind. Its history dates back to the founding of Rome in the 8th century BC. and lasts until the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. This centuries-old period is divided into three parts: royal, republican and imperial.

Rome itself was founded by Italic tribes near the Tiber River and was at first a small village. To the north of it lived the Etruscan tribes. According to legend, the Vestal Rhea lived there, who by chance gave birth to two sons from the god Mars - Romulus and Remus. By order of Rhea's brother and father, the children in the basket were thrown into the river and nailed to the Palatine Hill, where they were fed by a she-wolf. Subsequently, on this hill in 753 BC Romulus built Rome, and the she-wolf became a sacred animal for the city.

At times Tsarist period(VIII century BC - VI century BC) Ancient Rome was ruled by seven kings in turn. In the VIII century, the Romans became friends with the Sabines and their king Tatius ruled jointly with Romulus. However, after the death of Tatius, Romulus became the king of the united peoples. He created the Senate and strengthened the Palatine. The next king was Numa Pompilius. He was famous for his piety and justice, for which he was elected by the Senate. The third king, Tullus Hostilius, was distinguished by militancy and often fought with neighboring cities.

After his death, the Sabine Ankh Marcius came to power, who significantly expanded the city to the sea coast. During the Royal period, Rome was alternately ruled by Latins, Sabines or Etruscan rulers. One of the wisest rulers was Servius Tullius of Corniculum. Once he was captured by the Romans, became the successor of Tsar Tarquinius the Ancient and married his daughter. After the death of the king, he was unanimously elected by the Senate. At the beginning of the VI century BC. through the efforts of the Latin-Sabine patricians, the royal power in Rome fell and came Republican period, lasting up to about 30 BC

This period was quite long, so it is customary to divide it into two parts: the Early Roman Republic and the Late Roman Republic. The early period was marked by the struggle of the patricians (tribal aristocracy) and the plebeians (descendants of the defeated people). Patricians were born with privileges of the highest caste, and plebeians were not even allowed to enter into legal marriages or carry weapons. The republic was ruled by two consuls from the patrician caste. This state of affairs could not last long, so the plebeians organized a riot.

They demanded the abolition of debt interest, the right to participate in the senate and other privileges. Due to the fact that their military role in the country increased, the patricians had to make concessions and by the end of the 3rd century BC. the plebeians had the same rights and opportunities as the "higher caste". During this same period, the Romans were involved in a series of wars that resulted in the conquest of Italy. To 264 BC Rome became the leading power in the Mediterranean. The late period of the formation of the Republic was marked by a series of Punic Wars, during which the Romans took Carthage.

Characteristics of the main achievements of the civilization created by the ancient Romans. Description of the cultural heritage of Rome in the modern fields of art, science and law. Brief periodization of Roman history with the main features of each stage.

We will travel through the history of Ancient Rome through two millennia. Having absorbed the cultural riches of antiquity, the Roman Empire was able to bring them to an even higher level. The heritage of Ancient Rome is found in many countries.

For example, in England, ancient walls built by Roman soldiers have been preserved. Many cities arose on the places where the military camps of the Romans were created. What is the reason for the fact that in Europe the gauge of the railway is narrower than in Russia?

The modern Romano-Germanic legal system in Europe is based on Roman law, the origins of which were the "laws of the 12 tables". The division into private and public law also came to us from Rome.

Remarkable works of architecture, sculpture, painting were created in the Roman Empire. The Colosseum, the Pantheon, the triumphal arch of Septimius Severus still delight our eyes. Rome improved much of what it adopted from Ancient Greece.

The planets of the solar system are named after the Roman gods: Mercury is the god of trade, Venus is the goddess of love, Mars is the god of war, etc. In addition, many space objects are called in Latin.

Latin is ancient and classical. It reads all the letters that are written. All diseases and medicines, all the names of plants and animals sound in this language. Many people's names are also of Latin origin. For example, August is majestic, Albert is white, Valentine is strong, strong, Victor is a winner. In addition, Konstantin is constant, Maxim is the greatest, Pavel is small, Sergey is highly esteemed.

According to some legends, the prototype of football and polo are elements introduced by Roman soldiers. There was a case when the heads of Roman soldiers were thrown out of the besieged fortress. Then, in response, the Romans rolled the heads of the enemy with swords on the ground and threw them into the enemy fortress. War is always an ugly and cruel thing.

There is a lot of Romanism in the political sphere. For example, the names - senate, presidium, veto, inauguration, forum, etc.

After making sure that Roman culture has deeply penetrated into our lives, let's get acquainted with the periods in the history of the great empire.

VIII-VI centuries BC- Early Rome, the era of the kings. Etruscan culture. History from the founding of Rome to the first republic. Permanent defense against the invasions of the Gauls. Rome from a small city turns into a capital.

V-I centuries BC- Republican period. Rise of the power of Rome. Successful conquests. Victory in the Punic Wars. Expansion of the sphere of influence to Gaul and England. History from the Early Republic to the Reign of Julius Caesar. What version did the Italian carabinieri officer put forward regarding the attempt on Caesar's life?

I century BC–II century AD- Principate - a period that lasted more than 200 years. Formally, the emperor was considered the first among the senators. During these years, Rome was still able to maintain its power. The first princeps was Octavian Augustus, the nephew of Julius Caesar.

3rd–5th centuries AD- Dominate - a period when the power of the emperor was not limited. Despite these conditions, the Roman Empire was in decline. In 395, it was divided into Western and Eastern. The Western Empire with its capital in Rome fell under the blows of the barbarians, the Eastern lived until the 15th century.

The history of Ancient Rome is unique and large-scale. Many ancient written sources have been preserved.

We will travel in an interesting, accessible and optimal way, learning about the Roman Empire.

ancient period

The foundation of the city of Rome in the Italian region of Latium is considered the beginning of Roman history. The first settlements arose in the X-IX centuries BC. on the Palatine, Esquiline, Quirinal and Viminal hills. The city was founded in 753 BC. Romulus. Presumably by the VIII century BC. includes the unification of the settlements of Esquilina and Palatina, later the communities of the remaining hills joined them. As a result, the City on seven hills was formed. The core of the urban settlement of Rome was made up of Latin and Sabine villages with the decisive influence of the Greeks and Etruscans in the political and cultural fields.

Royal period (VIII-VI centuries BC)

The names of seven kings are mentioned, under which Rome achieved a dominant position in Latium: Romulus, Numa Pompilius, Tullus Hostilius, Ankh Marcius, Tarquinius the Ancient, Servius Tullius and Tarquinius the Proud. The last kings came from the Etruscan Tarquinian dynasty. In the tsarist period, the transition from a primitive communal society to a class system was completed. There was a state with its inherent institutions, slavery arose. A particular expression of this development was the reform of Servius Tullius (6th century BC), who divided all citizens capable of bearing arms into five classes according to the property qualification, and also included the plebeians in the Roman people. As a result, the social position of a Roman citizen was determined not only by belonging to an ancient family, but also by wealth. With the exile around 510 B.C. Etruscan king Tarquinius the Proud, the Romans gained state independence in the form of an aristocratic republic.

Republic Period (510-31 B.C.)

During the era of the Republic, the state was ruled by regular or extraordinary magistrates who replaced each year. The highest state posts were the positions of two consuls, elected for a period of one year, and the highest authority was the senate. The internal political development of the early republican period (about 510-287 BC) was marked by the struggle of the estates, which was waged by free but disenfranchised plebeians against the privileged patricians. In its course, the plebeians managed to obtain major concessions from the patricians: the allocation of land, written legislation, access to political positions, the people's tribunate, the abolition of debt slavery. The result of this struggle was the formation of the ancient Roman civil community, which became the basis of the entire subsequent history of Rome. In 287 B.C. according to the Hortensian law, all decisions made by the plebeian comitia received legislative force. Thus, the patricians, together with the top of the plebs, organized a new socially privileged class - the nobility. In the foreign policy area, Rome achieved hegemony over neighboring tribes and peoples. Despite the heavy defeat suffered by the Romans in 387 BC. due to the invasion of the Gauls, by 265, as a result of wars with the Etruscans, Equs, Volsci, Samnites, Latins and Greek cities of southern Italy, they succeeded in gaining dominance over the entire peninsula. In the late Republican period, the expansionist interests of Rome spread beyond Italy. During the three Punic Wars, the Romans defeated their strongest rival Carthage. They annexed Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica, conquered the Po Valley, the coast of Liguria, Spain and destroyed Carthage. At the same time, Roman expansion into the eastern Mediterranean began. Wars in Illyria (229-228; 219 BC) and Macedonia (215-205; 200-197; 171-167 BC). The culmination of the wars in the East was the victory over the king of the Seleucid state Antiochus III (190 BC), the Aetolian (189 BC) and Achaean leagues (146 BC). As a result of the conquest of these vast areas, the military and political power of Rome increased. The ruthless enslavement of some of the conquered peoples supplied more and more labor power to the Italian latifundia, as well as to urban workshops, quarries and mines. Slaves became the decisive factor in the ancient mode of production. Roman slave society around the middle of the 2nd century BC. reached the classical form. At the same time, the impoverishment and impoverishment of the plebeian strata took place. The free Italic peasants, who had hitherto formed the basis of the economic and military power of the Roman slave state, migrated to the cities and replenished the army of the proletarians. This ancient lumpen-proletariat lived at the expense of society. Socio-economic development aggravated the class struggle and led to democratic movements, slave uprisings and a deep crisis of the republican system. Further aggressive wars in Gaul, Africa, Pontus and others (with Mithridates) and the need to repel the Cimbri invasion required the creation of a professional army by Marius (105 BC). Within the ruling class, a fierce struggle flared up between the optimates and the populace. The civil war of Marius and Sulla, the I and II triumvirates, the emergency powers of Pompey and the dictatorship of Caesar clearly demonstrated the inability of the ruling class to break the power of the Senate, which had become reactionary. It became obvious that the nobility was no longer able to rule by republican methods over the Roman power, which had gone far beyond the borders of Rome. The republic was replaced by an authoritarian form of government.

Imperial period (31 BC - 476)

The early imperial period (principate) (31 BC - 284) was a period of sole power, which was a form of monarchy with the preservation of the outward signs of a republic. After the victory over Antony in 31 BC. young Octavian Caesar became the sole ruler of Rome. He learned from the assassination of Caesar and demagogically proclaimed the "restoration of the Republic" but assumed a number of higher magistracies. In 27 B.C. adopted the title "August". During the reign of Augustus, a bureaucratic apparatus devoted to him was formed. The new position of city prefect was assigned to especially devoted senators. The person of the emperor himself was guarded by the Praetorian Guard. The urban plebs received "bread and circuses" instead of real political rights. Augustus issued many laws in favor of the slave owners. The foreign policy of the successors of Augustus, despite the absence of major wars, was aggressive. New provinces were annexed, the outer border was fortified. Under Emperor Trajan, the Roman Empire reached its greatest extent. Dissatisfied with the policy of the metropolis to extort taxes, the colonies repeatedly raised uprisings. Another problem was the onslaught of the Parthians and Germans, which intensified in the 2nd century. Beginning with Marcus Aurelius, emperors tried to resettle conquered peoples in the new lands of the Roman Empire. The colonatus, which arose due to the low productivity of slaves, became even more widespread. Numerous Asia Minor religious cults became widespread, and in the 1st century Christianity arose and developed into a world religion. The general crisis of production and the state was expressed in the frequent change of emperors, in the temporary falling away of Gaul and Palmyra. In the late imperial period (dominate) (284-476), Emperor Diocletian for the first time succeeded in reasserting the dominance of the aristocracy by establishing an absolute monarchy. It finally took shape under Constantine the Great. However, he failed to overcome the general crisis. The colonat more and more resembled slavery, until in 332 Constantine finally fixed the columns to the ground. Since the beginning of the 4th century, the Christian church has been included in the state system as a means of containing the masses. Overcoming the deep crisis was seen in the division of the empire into 2 parts. This finally happened after the death of Theodosius in 395. By the 5th century, the situation becomes catastrophic. Increasingly, there are attacks by barbarian tribes, the plunder of Italy and Rome. In 408-410, the attack of the Visigoths by Alaric, in 409 - the invasion of the Vandals in Spain and in 429 in North Africa, in 451 the invasion of the Huns of Attila, in 455 the sack of Rome by the vandals. The deposition of the last Roman emperor, Romulus Augustus, in 476 by Odoacer, king of the Rugians, is considered the end of the Western Roman Empire. The Eastern Roman Empire continued to exist until 1453.

The report on the topic "Ancient Rome" will tell about the culture and life in this country. "Ancient Rome" report grade 5 can present in the history lesson.

"Ancient Rome" report

Ancient Rome- a powerful ancient civilization that got its name from the capital - Rome. His dominions stretched from England in the north to Ethiopia in the south, from Iran in the east to Portugal in the west. The legend prescribes the founding of the city of Rome to the brothers Romulus and Remus.

The history of ancient Rome dates back to 753 BC. e. and ends in 476 AD. e.

In the development of the culture of Ancient Rome, the following main periods can be distinguished:

1. Etruscan VIII-II century BC e.
2. "royal" VIII-VI century BC. e.
3. Roman Republic 510-31 BC e.
4. Roman Empire 31 years. BC e. - 476 AD e.

What did the ancient Romans do?

Rome was originally a small city-state. Its population consisted of three estates:

• patricians - indigenous people who occupied a privileged position in society;
• plebeians - later settlers;
• foreign slaves - they were captured during the wars waged by the Roman state, as well as their own citizens who became slaves for breaking the law.

Slaves did housework, hard work in agriculture, worked in quarries.
The patricians received servants, talked with friends, studied law, military art, visited libraries and entertainment establishments. Only they could hold government positions and be military leaders.
The plebeians in all spheres of life were dependent on the patricians. They could not govern the state and command the troops. They had only small plots of land at their disposal. The plebeians were engaged in trade, various crafts - processing of stone, leather, metal, etc.

All work was done in the morning hours. After lunch, the residents rested and visited the baths with thermal waters. Noble Romans could go to libraries, to the theater.

The political system of ancient Rome

The entire 12-century path of the Roman state consisted of several periods. Initially, it was an elective monarchy headed by a king. The king ruled the state, and performed the duties of the high priest. There was also a senate, which included 300 senators, chosen by the patricians from among their elders. Initially, only the patricians participated in the popular assemblies, but in a later period, the plebeians also achieved these rights.

After the expulsion of the last king at the end of the VI century. BC, a republican system was established in Rome. Instead of a single monarch, 2 consuls were elected annually, who ruled the country together with the Senate. If Rome was in serious danger, a dictator with unlimited power was appointed.
Having created a strong, well-organized army, Rome conquers the entire Apennine Peninsula, defeats its main rival - Kargafen, conquers Greece and other Mediterranean states. And by the 1st century BC, it turns into a world power, the borders of which passed through three continents - Europe, Asia and Africa.
The republican system could not maintain order in an overgrown state. Several dozen of the richest families began to dominate the Senate. They appointed governors who ruled in the conquered territories. The governors shamelessly robbed both ordinary people and wealthy provincials. In response to this, uprisings and civil wars began, which lasted for almost a century. In the end, the victorious ruler became emperor, and the state became known as an empire.

Education in ancient Rome

The main goal of the Romans was to raise a strong, healthy, self-confident generation.
Boys from low-income families were taught by their fathers to plow and sow, and were introduced to various crafts.
Girls were prepared for the role of wife, mother and mistress of the house - they were taught to cook, sew and other women's activities.

There were three levels of schools in Rome:

• elementary schools, gave students basic skills in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Grammar schools taught boys from 12 to 16 years old. Teachers of such schools are more educated and occupied a fairly high position in society. Special textbooks and anthologies were created for these schools.
• The aristocrats sought to educate their children in rhetorical schools. Boys were taught not only grammar and literature, but also music, astronomy, history and philosophy, medicine, oratory and fencing.

All schools were private. The tuition fees in rhetorical schools were high, so the children of rich and noble Romans studied there.

Roman heritage

Ancient Rome left a great cultural and artistic heritage to mankind: poetic works, oratorical works, philosophical works of Lucretius Cara. Roman law, Latin language - This is the legacy of the ancient Romans.

The Romans created age-old architecture. One of the great buildings Coliseum. Heavy construction work was carried out by 12,000 slaves from Judea. They used a new building material created by them - concrete, new architectural forms - a dome and an arch. The Colosseum held over 50,000 spectators.

Another architectural masterpiece is Pantheon, i.e. temple complex of the Roman gods. This structure is in the form of a dome with a height of about 43 m. At the top of the dome there was a hole with a diameter of 9 m. Sunlight penetrated through it into the hall.

The Romans were rightly proud of the aqueducts - water pipes through which water flowed into the city. The total length of the aqueducts leading to Rome was 350 km! Some of them went to public baths.

To strengthen their power, the Roman emperors widely used a variety of mass spectacles. Caesar in 46 ordered to dig a lake on the Campus Martius, on which a battle was organized between the Syrian and Egyptian fleets. 2000 rowers and 1000 sailors took part in it. And the emperor Claudius staged a battle of the Sicilian and Rhodes fleets on Lake Futsin with the participation of 19,000 people. These spectacles impressed with their scale and splendor, convincing the audience of the power of the rulers of Rome.

Why did the Roman Empire fall? Scientists believe that the state and military power of the Romans was not able to manage such a huge empire.

According to one version of the history of the founding of Rome, the following happened. After the death of ancient Troy, few defenders of the city managed to escape. They were headed by the same Aeneas - "motor lad". The fugitives wandered the sea for a long time on their ships. And after a long journey, finally, they were able to land on the shore. On the shore they saw the mouth of a wide river flowing into the sea. Along the banks of the river there is a forest and thick bushes. A little further under the blue sky stretches a fertile plain, illuminated by the gentle sun.

Exhausted by the long journey, the Trojans decided to land on this hospitable coast and settle on it. This coast turned out to be the coast of Italy. Later, the son of Aeneas founded the city of Alba Longa on this site.

Decades later, Alba Longa was ruled by Numitor, one of the descendants of Aeneas. Numitor was not very lucky with a close relative. His younger brother Amulius fiercely hated the ruler and longed to take his place. Thanks to insidious intrigues, Amulius overthrew Numitor, but left him with his life. However, Amulius was very afraid of revenge from the descendants of Numitor. Because of this fear, on his orders, the native son of the former ruler was killed. And daughter Rhea Sylvia was sent as a vestal to. But, despite the fact that priestesses should not have offspring, Rhea Sylvia soon gave birth to twin boys. According to another legend, their father could be the god of war Mars.

Upon learning of everything, Amulius became very angry and ordered to kill Rhea Sylvia, and throw the newborns into. The slave who followed the order carried the children to the river in a basket. At this time, there were big waves on the Tiber due to a strong flood, and the slave was afraid to go into the raging river.

He left the basket with the children on the shore in the hope that the water itself would pick up the basket and the twins would drown. But the river only carried the basket lower to the Palatine Hill, and soon the flood ended.

She-wolf

The water left, and the boys fell out of the fallen basket and began to cry. A she-wolf, who had recently lost her puppies, came out to the river at the cries of children. She approached the children and maternal instinct overcame the instinct of a predator. The she-wolf licked the children and gave them her milk to drink. Nowadays, it is installed in a museum, it is a symbol of Rome.

Who raised Romulus and Remus

Later, the boys were noticed by the royal shepherd. He took the children and raised them. The shepherd named the twins Romulus and Remus. Children grew up in nature and became strong and dexterous warriors. When Remus and Romulus grew up, the named father revealed to them the secret of their birth. Having learned the secret of their origin, the brothers decided to return the throne to their grandfather Numitor. They gathered a detachment for themselves and headed for Alba Longa. The indigenous inhabitants of the city supported the uprising of Romulus and Remus, since Amulius was a very cruel ruler. So, thanks to the townspeople, the grandchildren were able to return the throne to their grandfather.

The young men fell in love with their way of life and did not stay with Numitor. They headed towards the Palatine Hill, to the place where the she-wolf had once found them. Here they decided to build their own city. However, in the process of deciding: “where to build a city?”, “whose name should it be named after?” and “who will rule?”, a very strong quarrel broke out between the brothers. During the dispute, Romulus dug a moat that was supposed to surround the future wall of the city. Rem, in mockery, jumped both over the ditch and over the embankment. Romulus was angry and on impulse killed his brother with the words: “Such is the fate of everyone who crosses the walls of my city!”.

Founding of Rome

Then Romulus founded a city on this site, starting with a deep furrow that marked the boundaries of the city. And he named the city in his honor - Rome (Roma). In the beginning, the city was just a group of poor mud and straw huts. But Romulus very much wanted to increase the population and welfare of his city. He attracted exiles and fugitives from other cities and carried out military raids on neighboring peoples. In order to marry, a Roman had to steal his wife from a neighboring settlement.

The Rape of the Sabine Women

Traditions say that once war games were organized in Rome to which neighbors with their families were invited. In the midst of the games, adult men rushed to the guests and, grabbing the girl, ran away.

Since most of the abductees belonged to the Sabine tribe, what happened became known in history as the Rape of the Sabines. Thanks to the stolen women, Romulus managed to unite the Sabines and the Romans into one, thus expanding the population of his city.

Development of ancient Rome

Years, decades and centuries passed. Rome developed and provided the basis for the most powerful of the ancient civilizations - Ancient Rome. When ancient Rome was at the height of its power, its power, culture, and traditions spread to much of Europe, northern Africa, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean. And the heart of this state was Italy.

Ancient Rome created the basis for the development of European civilization.

Thanks to him, some unique architectural forms, Roman law and much more appeared. Also, it was on the territory of the Roman Empire that a new creed was born - Christianity.

The capital of Italy has experienced periods of both decline and rebirth more than once. In this Eternal City, standing on seven hills, various eras with their variety of styles harmoniously combined. Antiquity and modernity, a certain freedom and religion have created a many-sided image of the great city. In modern Rome, the ruins of ancient temples, majestic cathedrals, luxurious palaces coexist with advertising of popular companies on billboards and facades of houses, numerous outlets with their noisy merchants.

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